Excellence, courage, and doing the right things

Christy Pambianchi, Corning’s senior vice president of human resources, shared career advice at the Women’s Management Council brunch

April 29, 2013

Christy Pambianchi ’90 (ILR), senior vice president of human resources at Corning Inc., shared her leadership advice for women in corporate America when she delivered the keynote address to more than 100 faculty members and current and admitted students at the Women’s Management Council brunch on campus April 14 . This marked the third year in a row that Corning has sponsored the annual event on behalf of Johnson’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion and Women’s Management Council. The event was held as part of Destination Johnson, a weekend designed to introduce admitted students to life at Johnson.

Pambianchi explained that many aspects of Corning’s culture enable women to succeed and grow as leaders. She noted that 37 percent of all Corning employees are women, and roughly one in four are management professionals; both numbers far exceed averages for companies nationwide. Pambianchi also emphasized Corning’s continued commitment to develop female leaders by aggressively pursuing talent, fostering collaboration, and encouraging women to aspire to leadership. An example of Corning’s demonstrated commitment to this principle, a new initiative named UP2, aims to grow female leadership exponentially by encouraging each female leader within the organization to mentor two women.

Pambianchi also shared some of her own reflections on leadership and offered career advice to all women in attendance. First, she pointed out the importance of being “really good at your day job. There is no substitute for competence and excellence.” She also emphasized how much courage matters in business ethics and that as a leader; one should always do the right thing, regardless of the consequences. Lastly, she encouraged the audience to think about careers as a marathon, not a sprint. Pambianchi closed her address by encouraging the audience to reflect on what matters to them personally and professionally, as well as to actively think about how to make a difference as future leaders in corporate America.

Nsombi B. Ricketts, senior director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, and Sarah Maynard, MBA ’14, president of the Women’s Management Council, also spoke at the brunch and welcomed the prospective female community to Johnson. Students left the brunch with a comprehensive guidebook to success for women at Johnson, compiled by Lindsay Petrovic, MBA ’13, and Alice Thieu, MBA ’13.